British Raj (Blackened Skies)
The British Raj also known as the Dominion of India, British India or simply 'India w'as a nation played by Robert Can't in Blackened Skies. Despite being a colonial nation at the start of the game the Administration quickly made a name for itself on the global stage as an opposition to the Black and Tans of the United Kingdom with its opposition of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty. It went on to become increasingly vocal in international politics including its call to war of the Commonwealth against Russia in Russia's first invasion of the Han Republic. People of the British Raj: Military Personnel The British Raj was run jointly between the Impearial Civil Service (ICS) and the British military presence in the nation. The military thus played a significant role in the politics of the nation as well as maintaining its foreign and domestic security. Commander in Chief: General Sir Colin Hay Colin Hay was born in 1878 in Australasia and did not start out his career in the Army. Instead he first joined the FCO. During his few years at the FCO he was assigned to the British Embassy in Brussels despite not having the knowledge of either French or Dutch. He got through just by hoping that other people would speak his language. In his book he sums up his time in Brussels by saying her did nothing much other than eating some good sandwiches. He soon left to train as an officer in the army and due to his brilliance and contacts he quickly rose through the ranks. By the age of 32 he was in command of the British forces in Bombay. During his time in Bombay he tried to reorganise his regimental command but found that this was increasingly hard. He often described the conditions of Bombay's garrison as a "den". He received a jaw injury during a collision with a adjutant during this time which still manifests itself to this day as what appears to be a slight slackness in his jaw. Soon after their incident he completely overhauled the systems in place in the Bombay Garrison in a way that many other commanders followed suit. He was also reputed to be totally incorruptible and was not tempted by any of the bribes offered to him a reputation which he attributes to his growing up in the Land of Plenty. He wrote a book about his childhood and time in Brussels called Men at Work in the Land Down Under which gained some attention due to his controversial description of a scene involving him meeting a woman who made him breakfast after him and his friends had been on an opium fuelled journey through the outback. Northern Command: General Sir Ivan Doroschuk Born in Quebec before the American invasion Doroschuk had always been an ambitious officer. He served with distinction in the BEF intervention in the Netherlands and following this transferred to garrison duty in the recently acquired territories in Indonesia. He pioneered many policies here in the regions his responded to nearly all criticisms with the phrase "If you don't nobody will" and he was well aware that he was making no friends through his actions. However as he said If my friends don't dance then they're no friends of mine. Australasian command soon grew tired of his brusque personality and he was transferred to India. Similarly to his time in Indonesia Doroschuk began changing this up in his new command with a particular emphasis on safety. Eastern Command: General Sir David F. Paich Paich distinguished himself as a commander of men in Africa. His use of troop movements and his logistical prowess were unmatched. He was most famous for always having a meteorologist constantly advising him as a member of his staff. His tactics often made use of the unusual African weather patterns, he was especially famous for using the African rain to his advantage. During the 5th Anglo-American war Paich was assigned to the Pacific theatre and took up a defensive position during the American invasion of Indonesia and his famous last order before battle of "Hold the Line, its not in the way that we'll stay 'till the end that will set us apart but the fact that we held the line." During the war his wife Rosanna was killed by an American soldier. Since that incident he has had a passionate hatred of Americans that led him on to only further victories in the theatre. Southern Command: General Shane MacGowan the Viscount Prouge The Viscount Prouge is generally considered to have been more of a political appointment than one based on skill. He is known for being a drunk ever since his wife ran off with an American during the 5th Anglo-American war. He is noted though for writing a critically acclaimed novella called The Fairytale of New York which is often perceived as a brutal and cynical attack on the American way of life while also being a touching love story. Despite these views however he is a relatively competent commander who keeps his troops in order. He is well known for ensuring that his policing troops have a competent choir. the SCPD choir is well know and has won a few choral competitions throughout India. Prouge is known to particularly enjoy it when they sing Galway Bay. Following the kidnapping of Sapna Awasthi during the Long March men under the command of the Viscount Prouge got into a fight with Portuguese Police forces which led to the British military occupation of Goa. The Western District: Major General Hans F. Zimmer Zimmer commands the relatively small Western Districts out of Quetta. He is known for his old fashioned infantry wave tactics. Concerns have been raised that his battlefield mantra is just to do the same thing again and again until it works. He is also known to be very fond of horns and they are used extensively in the regimental bands of the units under his command. British Commander in Egypt: General Gordon Grumman Gordon Grumman was a senior General who had served with distinction in the African Theatre for many years. Following the death of the Viscount Trevelyan he was appointed by Her Majesty as the next Viceroy and Governor-General of India. His appointment was seen as welcome in India as he had a reputation for not being a supporter of Fascism or Tom Black and had experience of life in the British colonies from his time in Africa. His first act as appointed Viceroy was to order the arrest of Marcy Barge the man who was at the time Acting Governor-General. People of the British Raj: Politicians Following the establishment of the Nuwara Eliya Parliament numerous British Lords made their way to India to take up seats in the new Parliament. By a previous constitutional convention regarding the India Budget it was decided that all acts of parliament only affecting India only needed to pass through the House of Lords. Thus all politicians in India during the Nuwara Eliya Parliament were hereditary peers. The Rt Hon Herbert Layton the Viscount Trevelyan Herbert Layton was born in 1882 at his family home in Westmorland to Henry Layton the fourth Viscount Trevelyan and Eleanor Layton, daughter of the then Prime Minister. Herbert read Theology at University College, Durham and became president of the Union Society. After graduation he acquired a job in the Colonial Office serving in the British Raj. in 1908 Henry Layton died and Herbert took up his position in Lords as the Viscount Trevelyan. He quickly took to politics and specifically found himself involved with issues related to India. He sat on the Ecclesiastical committee and later became chair of the cross party parliamentary committee for India. By 1917 he found himself as a cabinet minister - Secretary of State for India. He continued to be the main driving force for the continuation of the Civilizing Mission and under Henry Law's Government Trevelyan was appointed to the position of Governor-General of India. After rising to that position he guided the India Office in the continued expansion of Indian Railways and controversially campaigned for English schooling for all peoples of India. This eventually culminated in the Indian Education Act (1934) and the following enforcement act. Perhaps more controversially though he continued to speak out against the Black-North government as a member of the Conservative party. It was expected by many that he would be replaced after the new government took power however perhaps due to his popularity amongst the Indian Bureaucracy and general populace he remained at the helm of the Raj. He along with others orchestrated the establishment of the Nuwara Eliya Parliament to provide constitutional legitimacy to Indian Governance after Parliament in Westminster was dissolved. Included in these efforts were his many trips back to Britain where he tried to rally support amongst the old Conservative and Liberal supporters to come back with him to India. During the Long March he was travelling from Colombo to Bombay on the HMS Rosemary when the ship was caught in a storm and was lost with all hands. Her Grace Emily Stanford the Duchess of Gunfleet As a Tory peer the Duchess of Gunfleet was an ally of Trevelyan in Lords and was chair of the cross party parliamentary committee for India for the majority of the time between Trevelyan's appointment to the Governorship and the dissolution of the Westminster Parliament. Under Henry Law 's government she was Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal. Following the dissolution of Parliament in Westminster she worked closely with Trevelyan and Mattie Storin to create the basis for the Nuwara Eliya Parliament following which she became Leader of the Indian Parliamentary Group in Nuwara Eliaya and effectively head of Government. In the memoirs of Sir George Pendleton she is recorded as having known how to throw a good party. People of the British Raj: The Justices The Judicial System in India maintains a structure similar to that of the United Kingdom with the highest court of appeal being the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The Lady Storin Mattie Storin was a member of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council representing the Imperial Dominion of India. She was educated in St Edmund's College, Oxford and quickly rose to become one of the most respected Justices in India. Of great importance to India was her constitutional decisions regarding the governance of the India and the continued constitutional legitimacy of the Indian Government. She masterminded many of the legal aspects of the Indian laws passed through Westminster and was also the most important figure in the establishment of the Nuwara Eliya Parliament. Following the Long March she also became a key figure in the discussions of the most constitutional way to have a new Governor-General appointed. This led to the establishment of the Storin Commission . People of the British Raj: The Imperial Civil Service The ICS represented one of the two pillars upon which all of India stood, the military being the other one. The ICS was responsible for the maintenance of the Indian infrastructure and school system. They managed the ports and trade along with the collection of appropriate taxes. The most high up members of the ICS were to become some of the most powerful men and women in India, perhaps even the world. Marcy Barge Barge was born to ICS parents in Calcutta in 1898 and has lived in India for the majority of his life. In fact the only time in his life where he did not reside here was when he was taking his ICS exams in England. Barge was quick to rise up in the ranks of the service and formed a very competent working relationship with the at the time Secretary of State for India the Viscount Trevelyan. Together they worked to build up India’s infrastructure and bring all the perks of being British to the people of India. In later years Barge became head of the ICS in India and along with Undersecratry of State Sir George Pendleton and the Governor General he was instrumental in the enacting of the Indian Education Act and the following acts supporting it. After the death of Trevelyan Barge became by merit of being head of the ICS the presumed successor and took on the mantle of Acting Governor-General until the Storin Commission could find a way to make a constitutional transition into new leadership. Soon after he took on the position of Acting Governor-General he was replaced by General Gordon Grumman and was due to be tried for crimes relating to the occupation of Goa in what many assumed to be a political move on the part of Tom Black. In his resignation broadcast he spoke about intervention in the 2nd Sino-Russian War and caused an international scare over the possibility of British Intervention. This led to him being arrested on charges of treason after a short trial he was given a light sentence but stripped of all rank and responsibility. Sir George Pendleton Sir George attended university at University College, Durham at the same time as the Viscount Trevelyan. He quickly took up a role in the civil service as a member of the India office and rose through the ranks due to his hard work and natural talent. By the time Trevelyan was Secretary of State for India, Pendleton had become the Permanent Undersecratary of State for India a position he would hold until the dissolution of parliament at which point he began to move the services provided by the India Office to India. After that had been mostly completed in 1937 he travelled with Trevelyan back to India during the Long March. He wrote his memoirs in the 50s focusing mostly on his time in the India Office, the Long March and the following years. He testified to the Rochester Commission and his testimony was one of the most important factors. He would later go on to write another book detailing his involvement in Projects Sherborne, Harrow and Lancing. Sir George had a cousin working as a Journalist in Han China during the 2nd Sino-Russian War. Trivia The colourful cast of characters in Indian Government are for the most parts given names with some humorous or referential intent. All of the military leaders are named after musicians and the backstory of each of them is based on their well known musical accomplishments. Sapna Awasthi is an Indian musician who sings the song Chaiyya Chaiyya which has been used by SouthernKing in his NESes. Meanwhile Pendleton and Storin take their names from British political dramas. Pendleton being the civil servant from Edge of Darkness and Mattie Storin the journalist friend and lover of Francis Urquhart in House of Cards. Marcy Barge is a mathematician from the University of Vancouver who has published on one dimensional substitution tilings, a topic which Robert Can't has previously done research in. Trevelyan is the only character without such an origin however the Layton family is one that has appeared frequently in IOTs and is normal known for being a sometime friend a rival to the Hadley family. Grumman was a character created by the GMs and shares a name with an family of Aeronautical Engineers. Given one of the GMs is doing a masters(?) in Aeronautical Engineering we could assume a connection there.